Sample University of Florida Social Media Strategy Plan

1. M A D E L E I N E H A I S T
UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA- SOCIAL MEDIA
STRATEGY
FEBRUARY 21, 2016

2. TABLE OF CONTENTS
• Executive Summary…………………………………………………………………….3
• Social Media Audit ………………………………………………………………….....4-7
• Social Media Objectives………………………………………………………………8-10
• Online Brand Persona and Voice ……………………………………………………11-13
• Strategies and Tools …………………………………………………………………….14
• Timing and Key Dates …………………………………………………………………..15
• Social Media Roles and Responsibilities ……………………………………………..16
• Social Media Policy……………………………………………………………………….17
• Critical Response Plan ……………………………………………………………………18-19
• Measurement and Reporting Results …………………………………………………20-22

3. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Our social media goal for the University of Florida
accounts is to create a personable media presence that is
aligned with the goals and values of the university.
The primary focus is to increase brand awareness by
creating fun and engaging content for social media sites.
• Social Strategies that will support the
aforementioned goal:
• Tailor posts to the demographics who will be viewing the sites to
increase response
• Increase amount of interactive and audiovisual posts

4. SOCIAL MEDIA AUDIT
Audit of the University of Florida’s social media accounts to date. The
following includes an assessment of social media platforms, website traffic,
audience demographics and competitors
Social Media Assessment
Data as of November 1, 2015
Social Network URL Follower Count Average Weekly
Activity
Average
Engagement Rate
Twitter https://twitter.com/UF
?lang=en
108,480 12 posts per week 3%
Facebook https://www.facebook.
com/uflorida/
555,804 3 posts per week 4%
Instagram https://www.instagram
.com/uflorida/?hl=en
74,520 2 posts per week 1,500-2,000
Social Media Assessment: Instagram currently receives the most interactions. Specific Facebook posts also have
a high number of interactions. Creating new ways to engage Twitter users should be considered.

5. SOCIAL MEDIA AUDIT
Source Volume Percentage of Overall
Traffic
Twitter 20,000 unique visits 10%
Facebook 300,000 unique visits 30%
Instagram N/A N/A
Website Traffic Sources Assessment
Monthly average, August 2015 to November 2015
Summary: Facebook leads to the most website traffic. Instagram gets a
significant amount of interaction, but direct traffic data is unavailable.

6. SOCIAL MEDIA AUDIT
Audience Demographics Assessment
Survey via e-mail and online links distributed in August/September. Total
responses: 20,000
Age
Distribution
Gender
Distribution
Primary Social
Network
Secondary
Social
Network
Primary Need Secondary
Need
45% 18-30
30% 31-40
15% 41-55
10% 56-80
53% Female
47% Male
50% Facebook
30% Instagram
30% Twitter
45% Instagram
30% Facebook
25% Twitter
Searching
application
information,
searching for
sporting event
info
Miscellaneous
information
about the
university-
clubs, teams,
etc.
Audience Demographic Summary: A majority of the survey respondents
are in the 18-30 age group. Instagram and Facebook are their main social
media platforms. Application and sporting information are the main points
driving visitors to the site.

7. SOCIAL MEDIA AUDIT
Competitor Name Social Media Profile Strengths Weaknesses
Florida State
University
Instagram @floridastateuniversity Quality images, very clear
pictures with a lot of color.
Posts show various aspects of
the university and what they
have to offer.
Captions are not very
creative. The captions are
often just a list of hashtags.
Creating clever, explanatory
captions will draw in more
views.
University of
Miami
Facebook
@universityofmiami
Good use of images and
videos with posts. Hashtags
are not over used.
Posts do not have a lot of
comments or shares. Content
should be more engaging and
instigate a response from
followers.
Competitor Assessment
Summary: The analysis focused on two other colleges in Florida. One with a strong presence
on Instagram and the other on Facebook. Both schools had great visual content. They could
improve on making their posts more engaging with better captions and content.

8. SOCIAL MEDIA OBJECTIVES
• In 2016, the primary focus of the University of Florida’s social media
accounts will be to increase brand awareness by creating an inviting,
personable media presence that potential, current and graduated
students can relate to.
• Specific Objectives:
1. Increase the amount of videos posted to Facebook and Twitter by
30% in 6 months
2. Increase amount of views to social media platforms by 40% in 6
months by:
• Posting new and engaging content regularly
• Re-tweeting, liking and sharing posts from followers
• Encourage followers to share content by posting visuals
• Use hashtags to define the brand
3. Increase Twitter followers by 2,000 in 6 months

9. SOCIAL MEDIA OBJECTIVES
• Key Messages
• UF is a fun and engaging educational community
• A place to find your passion
• A tight-knit community of intelligent individuals
• KPIs
1. Number of unique visitors to Twitter and Facebook
2. Number of Instagram followers and posts
3. Number of Tweets containing visual content
4. Number of Facebook videos posted

10. SOCIAL MEDIA OBJECTIVES:
DEMOGRAPHIC EXAMPLES
Age
18-30
31-40
41-55
56-80
Gender
Male
Female

11. ONLINE BRAND PERSONA AND VOICE
Adjectives that describe the University of Florida brand:
• Exciting
• Entertaining
• Fun
Adjectives that describe the University of Florida brand
when interacting with customers:
• Informative
• Personable
• Relatable
• Engaging

12. ONLINE BRAND PERSONA AND VOICE
EXAMPLES

13. ONLINE BRAND PERSONA AND VOICE
EXMAPLES

14. STRATEGIES AND TOOLS
• Paid: Paid-ads on Twitter at least once a week during college application season (July-
November), boost popular Facebook posts on Monday and Friday night- must have at least
800 organic likes
• Owned: Use the same theme throughout all social media pages, sharing the same content
with varying captions. Begin using #GatorNation. Encourage shares and likes by
interacting with user content- share/like/comment on posts from followers and least three
times a week.
• Earned: Monitor Facebook and Twitter for trending hashtags and videos. Create content
that coincides with these themes. Form contests for followers to win gator gear or football
tickets that promote sharing and interacting with company’s page.
• Tools:
• Approved tools:
• Canva
• Hootsuite
• Buffer
• Rejected tools:
• N/A
• Existing subscriptions:
• Photoshop

15. TIMING AND KEY DATES
Holidays/ special days
• Admissions Day
• Valentine’s Day
• St. Patrick’s Day
• Easter
• First day of summer
• Fourth of July
• Back to school- August
Internal Events
• Graduation
• Sporting events
• Beginning of summer
session
• Beginning of fall
session

16. SOCIAL MEDIA RESPONSIBILITIES
• Vice President University Relations- Jane Adams
• Assistant Vice President Marketing- Nicole Yucht
• Senior Director of Media Relations- Steve Orlando
• Strategic Communications Director- Donna
Winchester
• Senior Writer- Alisson Clark
• Web Content Coordinator- Kay Howell

17. SOCIAL MEDIA POLICY
The University of Florida’s social media accounts are a way for the college to interact
with the Gator Nation. Social media is an informal way to interact with target audiences,
but proper etiquette should be used in all posts. UF social media accounts are expected
to follow the ideals of the university.
• Be respectful
• Be transparent
• Listen to the audience
• Be kind
• Be aware
• Be active
• Comment on posts from followers
• Be professional
All social media activity on UF accounts should be appropriate and respectful. Failure by
an employee to comply with the UF social media policy will result in appropriate
disciplinary action, including termination and legal action if necessary.

18. CRITICAL RESPONSE PLAN
• Scenario 1- Inappropriate picture posted to @uflorida Instagram
• Action Plan
• When you see the picture
• Screenshot the image and immediately send to Nicole Yucht
• Delete the image
• Nicole will contact Jane Adams to discuss the reach of the image
• Will issue an apology and follow-up Instagram
• Nicole and Jane will handle all media if the university if contacted about
the image
• The employee responsible for posting the image will be investigated
and appropriate disciplinary measures will be taken
• No pre-approved messaging. Messages will be tailored to the specific
incident and will be apologetic.

19. CRITICAL RESPONSE PLAN
• Scenario 2- Social Media account is hacked
• Action Plan
• Alert Nicole immediately
• Efforts to shut down the sites will be made
• Monitor for any inappropriate posts that are not coming from designated
operators of site
• The public will be alerted immediately

20. MEASUREMENT AND REPORTING
RESULTS
Source Volume Percentage of Overall Traffic
Twitter 60,000 unique visitors 25%
Facebook 300,000 unique visitors 37%
Instagram 20,000 unique visitors 3%
Social Network URL Follower Count Average Weekly
Activity
Engagement Rate
Twitter https://twitter.com/U
F?lang=en
113,000
+4% growth
20+ posts per week 4% engagement
Facebook https://www.facebook.c
om/uflorida/
631,595
+12% growth
10 posts per week 6% engagement
Instagram https://www.instagram.
com/uflorida/?hl=en
81,000 +8% growth 4-5 posts per week About 3,000 likes per
post
Quantitative KPIs
Reporting period: 3 months
Date as of February 1, 2016
Website Traffic Sources Assessment
Monthly average: November 2015 to January 2016
Social Network Data
Timeframe: as of Feruary 1, 2016

21. MEASUREMENT AND REPORTING
• We have greatly increased the amount of visual content on all social media
platforms. Facebook and Twitter posts have included colorful images and
videos that have increased engagement.
• The amount of Twitter followers has increased more than 2,000, which was
our goal.
Qualitative KPIs
Sentiment Analysis
Analysis of 400 Facebook posts, 400 Instagram posts and 400 Tweets
revealed the following.
• A high level of positive sentiment from current students as well as alumni.
Positive interaction included shares, tags, comments and “likes.”
• The biggest group of negative interaction came from individuals from rival
schools.

22. MEASUREMENT AND REPORTING
• Proposed Action Items
• Continue posting creative images and videos to social media
• Consider a contest or giveaway to increase shares and
engagement
Images from Google Images.